LGUs now allowed to purchase COVID-19 rapid test kits | Inquirer News

LGUs now allowed to purchase COVID-19 rapid test kits

/ 04:53 PM May 14, 2020

MANILA, Philippines — Local government units (LGUs) are now allowed to purchase rapid test kits approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as the Philippines looks to impose a more aggressive COVID-19 testing program, Malacañang said Thursday.

“Alinsunod po ito sa sinabi ng Presidente, siya po ang mananagot sa paggamit ng rapid test kits,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a televised press briefing.

This comes even as the Department of Health (DOH) has repeatedly rejected the use of rapid antibody test kits for mass testing as these could produce false-negative results that could lead to the further spread of the novel coronavirus.

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The Health Department previously said that tests based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) should remain the “gold standard” in determining if patients had contracted SARS CoV-2—the virus that causes COVID-19.

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If patients test negative or positive using the rapid antibody test kit, their results need to be confirmed using the PCR test, the DOH said.

The government has introduced a more aggressive testing drive as coronavirus infection in the country continues to rise despite having implemented one of Asia’s strictest and earliest lockdown measures.

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To date, there are 11,876 confirmed cases of the respiratory disease, including 2,337 recoveries and 790 deaths.

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TAGS: Coronavirus, COVID-19, Health, LGUs, Malacañang, NcoV, Outbreak

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